FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a half-bridge configuration containing a first and a second transistor, where the two transistors are connected in series by their path electrodes. An operating voltage is present across the series circuit, and a load can be connected to the path electrodes of the two transistors, the path electrodes being connected to one another.
In order to be able to supply a load, e.g. an electric motor, with a bidirectional current for counterclockwise and clockwise rotation, a so-called H bridge configuration is used. An H bridge configuration is a bridge circuit containing four semiconductor switches, for example 4 MOSFETs, in which the load is located in the shunt path, and two transistors are connected in series by their path electrodes in each bridge path. A drive circuit enables the transistors to be controlled in such a way that the current flows through the load, e.g. the above-mentioned electric motor, in one direction or in the opposite direction. Depending on the current direction, the electric motor rotates in the clockwise or counterclockwise direction.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,703,390 discloses a semiconductor circuit configuration in which four MOSFETs which form a bridge are seated in an electrically insulated manner on an Si support. If large power switches are required in order to switch high currents, however, it is more cost-effective to distribute the power switches between a plurality of supports that are optimized in a function-specific manner.
Published, European Patent Application EP 0 809 292 A2 describes a power transistor module in which two transistors are disposed on a special electrically insulating substrate seated on a metal support. The two transistors are disposed in the above-mentioned half-bridge configuration.
The H bridge configuration disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,703,390 and the half-bridge configuration disclosed in the Published, European Patent Application EP 0 809 292 A2 have the disadvantage that the electrical conductivity and the thermal conductivity are not optimal.